This invention relates to an improved combine grain tank loading system and more particularly to an improved drive for driving an auger type conveyor that moves the grain from one side of the combine to a discharge point above a central portion of the grain tank.
Still more specifically, this invention relates to an improved drive for a combine grain tank loading system of the general type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,503,533, also assigned to the assignee herein.
As pointed out in said patent, current combines conventionally include an elevated grain tank in which the harvested crop is temporarily stored during the harvesting operation, and the grain tanks are conventionally loaded by a clean grain elevator which collects the clean grain from a grain cleaning mechanism near the bottom of the machine and elevates it along one side of the combine body. As is apparent from said patent, it is known to provide an elevator having its upper discharge end below the level of the top of the grain tank adjacent one side of the grain tank, and it is further known to provide a laterally extending auger type conveyor that extends upwardly and inwardly from the upper discharge end of the elevator in cantilever fashion for moving and discharging the grain above a central portion of the grain tank. As is also apparent from said patent, the auger type conveyor includes a horizontal outer section and an upwardly and inwardly inclined portion within the grain tank, the auger type conveyor being driven by a belt drive disposed at the outer end of the conveyor. A universal joint is provided in the auger shaft at the juncture of the outer and inner sections to accommodate the inclination of the inner section relative to the horizontal outer section.